A whistleblower was incarcerated this Friday, December 15, at Antalaha prison in the north of the country. Nathassa Razafiarisoa, president of a human rights association in the Sava region, advised residents of a district of Sambava who filed a complaint after the destruction of their house. An emblematic case of land conflicts and the repression of whistleblowers on the Big Island.
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It is a very modest neighborhood near an arm of the sea, in Sambava. The residents of Marotsiazo took possession of a lot in 2010 and paid property taxes. But, in 2017, an individual claimed the entire land, i.e. 23 hectares. Justice ruled in favor of the businessman, at first instance, on appeal and finally in cassation last year.
For several weeks, houses have been destroyed without warning. The residents filed a complaint, but they are the ones who are in turn incarcerated on the complaints of the opposing party, that of the new owner. Whistleblower Nathassa Razafiarisoa, who is trying to defend her neighbors, and who had already been referred to the Antalaha court last month, has just been placed under arrest warrant this Friday, after a second less police custody two months.
Land disputes are numerous in Madagascar. The problem, believes Mamy Rakotondrainibe, president of the Collective for the Defense of Malagasy Lands, comes from the difficulty of obtaining a legal title to the property. “ To have a land title, there are twenty steps, there is a lot of corruption, so you have to pay much more than what is (due) so many people do not have a land title. “.
The authorities must act, insists Mamy Rakotondrainibe at the microphone of Claire Fages from the Africa editorial team, to resolve this type of conflict, “ They’re not going to stop everyone! “. Many other land conflicts are brewing in Sambava, she emphasizes. Furthermore, United Nations representatives on site note that many whistleblowers and human rights defenders are currently being targeted on the Big Island.
Read alsoMadagascar: civil society denounces human rights violations in land dispute
A new land law was passed in June 2021 and is the subject of criticism from farmers’ defense organizations.